TRACER STUDY ABOUT THE PROJECT FACILITATING THE …

TRACER STUDY ABOUT THE PROJECT “FACILITATING

THE TRANSITION OF PUPILS FROM LOWER TO UPPER

SECONDARY SCHOOLS”

NOVEMBER 2020

MUNICIPALITY OF PEJA

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Tracer study about the project “Facilitating the transition of pupils form lower to upper

secondary schools”

Supported by the Municipal Education Directorate in the Municipality of Peja.

© Solidar Suisse, Peja, November 2020.

© Kosovo Career Development Foundation, Prishtina, November 2020.

www.solidar-suisse-kos.org www.koscdf.org

[email protected] [email protected]

+383-39-421-411 +383-44-507-575

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Table of Contents 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 4

2. Acknowledgment .............................................................................................................................. 5

3. Study methodology ........................................................................................................................... 6

4. Findings of the tracer study .............................................................................................................. 7

4.1 Top favorite professions ............................................................................................................... 7

4.2 Top profiles selected in upper secondary school ......................................................................... 8

4.3 Enrollment of pupils based on high schools ................................................................................. 9

4.4 Match between selected occupations and registered profiles .................................................... 9

4.5 The trend of the match and mismatch ....................................................................................... 10

5. Conclusion and recommendations ................................................................................................. 12

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1. Introduction This report aims to present the progress and findings of the tracer study within the project “Facilitating

the Transition of Pupils from Lower to Upper Secondary School” in the Municipality of Peja, which is

implemented by the Kosovo Career Development Foundation (KCDF), with the support of Solidar Suisse

and the Municipal Education Directorate of Peja.

Various phases of the project are characterized by numerous activities around career guidance and

counseling and entrepreneurship. Therefore, in the concluding phase of this project, a tracer study was

conducted with pupils enrolled in grade X in the school year 2020/2021. This was done to track their

transition from grade IX, respectively lower secondary school, to upper secondary school.

During the project pupils were involved in a series of activities related to career guidance, among which

we distinguish the establishment of focus groups based on occupations declared by pupils after

completing Career Tests and discussing their results with parents. Career guidance services were

provided to approximately 1,200 pupils from 27 lower secondary schools in the Municipality of Peja, and

among them, 585 declared a chosen occupation, while 446 were involved in the tracer study.

Based on the previous activities of the project, the tracking was done by finding out whether there is

some correspondence, and to what level it exists, between the focus groups created for certain

occupations and the profiles where these pupils were enrolled in upper secondary school, as declared by

them.

Through these indicators, KCDF assessed the fulfillment of project objectives by contacting all pupils,

including those who did not attend upper secondary school. As a result, the findings derived from this

study aim to inform relevant stakeholders about the current situation, the impact of this project and the

needs of pupils for new directions or support in identifying the right career path.

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2. Acknowledgment KCDF expresses gratitude and appreciation for the close cooperation and valuable contribution in the

establishment of the tracer study to all IX graders of the school year 2019/2020 in the Municipality of

Peja, lower secondary school teachers who were directly involved in the project implementation, the

Municipal Council for Career Orientation (MCCO), quality assurance coordinators at the school, and

other representatives of high schools, parents, professionals from various fields who provided valuable

input by presenting their professions and talking to pupils about them, as well as the Municipal

Education Directorate in Peja together with Solidar Suisse, who have provided support for all activities

carried out on behalf of this project.

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3. Study methodology The project “Facilitating the Transition of Pupils from Lower to Upper Secondary School” was divided into

three implementation phases. During this time, a series of activities were carried out by pupils of IX grades

of 27 lower secondary schools in Peja. Respectively, the initiation, implementation and closing phases took

place during the months of March to September 2020.

In the initiation phase, all MCCO members and Life and Work teachers were presented and informed

about the project activities and associated benefits for the schools. In the implementation phase, pupils

and teachers were involved in the implementation of activities, in order to facilitate the career guidance

process, the development of entrepreneurial skills and the promotion of professional maturity among

them. From above 1,200 pupils involved in this project, 585 of them declared their most suitable

occupation or occupations (up to 3 occupations could be declared), identified throughout different

activities. These pupils used various channels to declare these occupations, such as: phone, Facebook

group, SMS, e-mail, Viber, WhatsApp, and Busulla.COM.

In the final phase, a follow-up study was conducted with a sample of 585 pupils who had declared an

occupation and who were also enrolled in a certain profile in upper secondary school. The response rate

to the survey was 76.2%, or in real terms 446 pupils provided an answer. This study was conducted

through several communication channels, where a survey was initially created, the questions of which

helped to understand the course of the career path that pupils have followed and the consistency with

the occupation declared in June 2020.

All surveys completed by pupils were aggregated and compared among themselves, creating a final list of 446 pupils. Based on this list, results were generated about the match and mismatch of the choice of pupils from grades IX and X, which are elaborated in the following chapters of the study.

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4. Findings of the tracer study As discussed previously, during the implementation phase, pupils were registered on Busulla.COM and

underwent career tests, to understand which occupations are most suitable in accordance with their

interests, values, abilities, and preferences as well as with their potential assessment test.

Through this activity, KCDF has collected the results of all pupils and has revealed the top 10 dominant

occupations for pupils of IX grades of the school year 2019/2020 in the Municipality of Peja, as follows:

1. Doctor

2. Architect

3. Actor

4. Nurse

5. Fashion Designer

6. Dentist

7. Teacher

8. Psychologist

9. Teacher

10. Pharmacist

The support of the project for the pupils of these and other focus groups continued through the

exploration of professions on Busulla.COM platform and through the presentations of guest speakers.

For this purpose, the project identified eminent professionals from industries related to the above-

mentioned focus groups.

4.1 Top favorite professions Given the focus groups identified above, the following graph illustrates the percentage of pupils who

belong to each group, out of the total of 446 pupils who responded to the survey:

Top 10 professions chosen by pupils

According to the diagram above, we can understand that 25% of pupils have turned out to declare that

they are most suitable to pursue a career as Doctors, followed by careers in such occupations as Architect

(11%), Actor (10%), Nurse (10%), etc.

The national CGIS Busulla.COM classifies occupations based on 13 fields of education. These areas aim to

classify professions into broad groups according to their related activities. From these areas of education,

we understand that “Health and well-being,” “Arts, humanities and language,” and “Architecture and

construction” are top three dominant among pupils.

25%

11%

10%10%

8%

8%

8%

7%

7%6%

Doctor

Architect

Actor

Genral Nurse

Fashion Designer

Dentist

Kindergarten teacher

Psychologist

Teacher

Pharmacist

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Some of the top occupations that are part of the field of “Health and well-being” are Doctor, Nurse,

Dentist, and Pharmacist. In the field “Arts, humanities and language” are Actor and Fashion designer.

Furthermore, Architect belongs to the field of “Architecture and construction,”

4.2 Top profiles selected in upper secondary school Given that the pupils have already identified their most suitable occupation/s, the study moved further

to understand the profile or concentration which they had chosen in the upper secondary school. This

would allow the study to understand whether or not there is a match between the occupation declared

and the profile/concentration chosen. The top profiles/concentration selected by pupils are presented

in the following diagram:

Top registered profiles by pupils

From the above diagram, one can understand that the natural sciences profile is convincingly more

dominant with 34% out of 446 enrolled pupils, the social sciences profile with 23%, the general nurse

profile with 14%, followed by auto-mechanical, laboratory technician profile, etc.

It can be easily understood that pupils during this school year were mostly oriented towards

gymnasiums of natural and social sciences. This supports the earlier finding regarding the choice of

professions by pupils, where Doctor was the first occupation in the top 10 focus groups identified.

However, the diagram also shows that no profile similar that corresponds to the occupation of Actor has

been selected. This is perhaps an important finding that upper secondary schools in the Municipality of

Peja do not provide guidance or education for pupils who intend to develop a career as an actor, despite

the fact that it turns out to be one of the top 10 selected occupations of the pupils involved in the study.

While it is important to note that for the remaining occupations in the focus groups created, upper

secondary education in the Municipality of Peja offers at least one profile that supports education.

In contrast, among the number of respondents, 4% or 18 pupils did not enroll at all to pursue education

in upper secondary school. The study shows that some reasons are:

• Inability to be admitted at the intended profile.

• Financial problems (especially for pupils who travel from rural areas into the city to attend school).

• Lack of aspirations to pursue further education.

34%

23%

14%

6%

5%

Natural Sciences

Social Sciences

General nurse

Installer of heating and air conditioning andwater supply and sewerageDental Assistant

Auto Mechanic

Laboratory technician

Textile design

Interior design

Road transport

Pharmacy technician

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4.3 Enrollment of pupils based on high schools As it is clearly stated, most pupils are enrolled in gymnasium and medicine, which can be seen in the

following diagram, where we indicate the percentage of pupils enrolled per school in Peja:

Enrollment in upper secondary schools

Gymnasium "Bedri Pejani" is the most attended high school by pupils who have decided to continue

upper secondary education, with 45% or 193 pupils enrolled in grade X by pupils participating in this

study. Then, the schools below follow:

• Medicine School with 20% or 87 pupils.

• Technical School “Shaban Spahija” with 19% or 83 pupils.

• Arts School “Odhise Paskali” with 11% or 45 pupils.

• Economic School “Ali Hadri” with 4% or 16 pupils.

• Music School “Halit Kasapolli” with 1% or 4 pupils.

The numbers of pupils enrolled for the school year 2020/2021 in these schools are derived from the

total number of pupils participating in the study survey, respectively 428 pupils.

4.4 Match between selected occupations and registered profiles One of the most important findings of this study is the measurement of the match and mismatch

between the selected occupations of pupils in grade IX and the profile or concentration in which they

are enrolled in upper secondary school. The match of the pupils in this process is presented through the

following diagram:

45%

20%

19%

11%

Gymnasium "Bedri Pejani"

Medicine School

Technical School "Shaban Spahija"

Arts School “Odhise Paskali”

Economic School “Ali Hadri”

Music School “Halit Kasapolli”

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The match and mismatch

Out of 446 pupils, 50% or 224 of them have continued upper secondary education in profiles directly or

indirectly related to the selected profession, 46% or 204 pupils continued in profiles that are not related

to the chosen occupations. Moreover, 4% or 18 pupils stated that they had not enrolled in upper

secondary education at all.

4.5 The trend of the match and mismatch The study also analyzed trends of occupations that have more match and mismatch among the ones

selected and enrolled in upper secondary school. The top 10 selected occupations are grouped in the

respective fields of education and this trend was analyzed. The fields of education identified according

to the selected occupations are:

• “Architecture and construction” – Occupation: Architect.

• “Health and well-being” – Occupations: Doctor, Dentist, General Nurse, and Pharmacist.

• “Social sciences, journalism, and information” – Occupations: Teacher and Psychologist.

• “Natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics” – Occupations: Doctor, Dentist, Nurse, and

Pharmacist.

• “Arts, humanities, and language” – Occupations: Actor and Fashion designers.

50%46%

4%

Match between the selected occupations and enrolled profile

Match

Mismatch

Not enrolled

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The following diagram shows the correlation of selected occupations and profiles enrolled in upper

secondary school between these 5 fields of education, to understand whether certain fields exhibit a

certain pattern different from others:

Match and mismatch trends

Here we notice that for the education fields “Health and well-being” and “Natural sciences, mathematics,

and statistics,” there is a higher matching trend. This can be as a result of many factors that influence

career selection, considering the opportunities to find a job, the perspective in these jobs, etc. Other fields

have a higher percentage of mismatch; however, the field of “Architecture and construction” has a

significantly higher discrepancy between the occupation and the chosen profile. This may include several

factors, which may be stereotypes about the respective profile in upper secondary schools, which

discourages pupils from enrolling in these school.

Other important factors influencing the mismatch of the preferred profession and the selection of the

upper secondary school profile may be the influence of family and society or the absence of certain

profiles in the upper secondary school. For example, the study finds that some pupils have chosen the

occupation of Actor, but this profile is not offered in the Municipality of Peja.

In addition, another possible factor is the non-fulfillment of the admission criteria in certain profiles,

which forces pupils to switch to another profile, in order not to remain unenrolled at all.

Last but not least, other important factors in decision-making are the influence of parents and society,

who can change the approach to certain decisions. Therefore, it is important that schools and decision-

making institutions address policies and actions that help parents understand the importance of their

role in their children's career choice process. At the same time, schools need to work with pupils so that

they can critically manage the influence sourcing from parents, relatives, and society in a way that

facilitates and improves the accuracy of their career decision.

0102030405060708090

Architecture andconstruction

Health and well-being

Social sciences,journalism and

information

Natural sciences,mathematics and

statistics

Arts, humanities andlanguages

Pe

rce

nta

ge

of

pu

pil

s

Fushat e edukimit

Decision matching across fields

Match Mismatch Not enrolled

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5. Conclusion and recommendations The production of this tracer study has involved many important partners, such as: lower secondary

schools, upper secondary schools in Peja, the Municipal Education Directorate in Peja, and the

partnership between KCDF and Solidar Suisse.

With the cooperation of the management of the lower secondary schools and the respective teachers

from each school, data was collected for the pupils involved in the project. One of the project activities

involved registering pupils on Busulla.COM and completing career tests. Although all pupils have

completed career tests and understood their suitable occupation, only 585 were willing to share this

information with the project. Consequently, this research consists of a sample of 585 pupils, of which

446 pupils responded to our survey questions.

Through this follow-up study we identified the profiles that pupils have selected to continue in upper

secondary school, high schools that have enrolled the most pupils, the match between the preferred

occupation and selected profile, and other important trends and patterns.

Therefore, the tracer study found that 50% of pupils are enrolled in upper secondary profiles or fields.

which are in line with their chosen occupations. 46% of pupils have chosen different directions from the

declared occupations and 4% of pupils have not continued their upper secondary education at all. This

result has been achieved thanks to the ongoing activities of the project during the months of March to

June 2020. Therefore, we consider that the consistent provision of career guidance services from grades

VI to IX, would increase the number of beneficiary pupils to accurately identify their career path.

From these findings we can understand that career tests and other activities developed within the

project have had a positive impact on pupils, as they have helped them decide on the occupations and

incentivize a conversation between the pupils and their parents. They have proven that half of them are

following the same path, identified thanks to the provision of counseling and career guidance services.

However, for 46% of pupils we have realized that they have changed their decision compared to their

statements in June 2020. Furthermore, for pupils who have chosen not to attend upper secondary

school it would be useful in future research to identify the numerous possibilities that caused them not

to register and how to tackle them.

For decision-makers such as schools, municipalities, and the ministry, it is important to consider

conducting such analyzes with as many pupils as possible, to get as much of an accurate grasp of the

reality. Such studies would help these institutions understand pupils’ expectations and needs for career

guidance and education programs (profiles and concentrations). Consequently, this would ensure that

pupils find support in the municipality's public schools to train in certain areas in which they aspire to

develop their careers.

Such studies may be further expanded in the future to understand the causes of the mismatch between

the occupations chosen and the profiles in enrolled in upper secondary school by pupils. This helps

schools understand if they are providing the necessary capacity for certain profiles, while it would also

be useful to understand the occupations of the parents and then to analyze the relationship between

the occupations of the parents and those declared by the pupils. Such research also helps to understand

the role and influence of parents in the career orientation for their children, which is considered to be

an important factor in this process.

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www.solidar-suisse-kos.org www.koscdf.org

[email protected] [email protected]

+383-39-421-411 +383-44-507-575

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